Metal Pig
Forum Supporter
Nox 800
How do you like the Nokta Impact compared to all your others?
Nox 800
How do you like the Nokta Impact compared to all your others?
I have some "modern" detectors in my outfit, such as a Nokta FORS Relic I keep a 5" DD coil mounted to for the nastiest of iron infested sites. A Minelab Vanquish 540 I keep the 5X8 DD on. My Nokta / makro Simplex + for beach hunting or drippy weather days. And my Garrett Apex units for day-to-day hunting.Metal Pig: said:Well, I obviously only have two options right now...but I would choose my Bandido. I was just talking to a former dealer of Tesoro who told me those machines can work around iron about as well as many of the recent releases....without having to go menu diving. Simple, powerful.
I liked the Gold Racer for nugget hunting type use, but the Kruzer I tried just didn't have as good an audio, and I wasn't impressed with it on higher-conductive coins-type targets. I'm sure the Gold Kruzer will do fine on lower-conductive gold nuggets or gold jewelry.Metal Pig: said:My Gold Kruzer is a highly sensitive machine for jewelry, but may have trouble discriminating coins from junk as well as others can.
Put in some time and enjoy them.Metal Pig: said:FYI, I just bought both these machines to get back into detecting in the Spring after my Eurotek crapped out over a year ago. I haven't had a chance to use either one yet.
I hope you don't have Covid 19, or if you do it is very mild, and that you are younger and/or in more fit health to better handle it.Metal Pig: said:Now it looks like I just might have COVID and will likely get tested today or tomorrow. Hopefully that doesnt put a damper on my plans for too long:-/ As stubborn as I am, I may just go out hunting locally anyway even though I feel like a truck ran over me.
Today, it would be my Bandido II µMAX w/6" Concentric coil if I wanted to not use a Tone ID or Target ID model. And if I wanted those features, it would be my Garrett Apex w/5X8 'Ripper' DD coil.
Monte
I made a lot of terrific finds with my Garrett models, and some White's models, during the hey-day era, mainly from 1968 and on through the '70s and into the early '80s. Those early period Coin Hunting days in larger urban areas with ample old parks, schools, vacant lots and what-ever, rewarded me with 60,000 to 70,000 coins per year .... unless I wasn't working over-time or extra-time which gave me more detecting time. Anyone who got out often, had a lot of good places to search that had seen activity going back to the mid-to-late 1800's, and had a quality detector or two and learned their devices and how-to-search, could also bring in an ample supply of coinage.beephead: said:Monte, the more I learn about detecting, the more I realize how great Tesoro detectors really are. ALL of my best finds were made with Tesoro detectors. Look at my banner finds on T-Net under 'tabman'.
beephead
It's always good to have a back-up or two, and depending upon the types of sites you hunt, including two or three good coils makes things even more flexible.Max houser: said:9 times out of 10 the E-trac, i know it well.. but I have been thinking about buying a back-up detector, probably a AT pro and mount a specific coil for private yards... that way i can just open the truck and grab one or the other depending on conditions...
I have some "modern" detectors in my outfit, such as a Nokta FORS Relic I keep a 5" DD coil mounted to for the nastiest of iron infested sites. A Minelab Vanquish 540 I keep the 5X8 DD on. My Nokta / makro Simplex + for beach hunting or drippy weather days. And my Garrett Apex units for day-to-day hunting.
But two model that are always along with me are my trusted Tesoro Bandido II microMAX and Silver Sabre microMAX, each with a 6" Concentric coil mounted. They are very capable detectors, and when I get ANY new detector or coil in-hand I compare them against my Tesoro's in a few tests to see if they can come close to handling iron nail challenges.
I liked the Gold Racer for nugget hunting type use, but the Kruzer I tried just didn't have as good an audio, and I wasn't impressed with it on higher-conductive coins-type targets. I'm sure the Gold Kruzer will do fine on lower-conductive gold nuggets or gold jewelry.
Put in some time and enjoy them.
But I have a question for you:
Is that a Tesoro Bandido microMAX or a Bandido II microMAX? There is a notable diffrence.
Tesoro made 4 Bandido series models. The original Bandido in the under-slung housing powered by two-9V batteries, then the Bandido II that looked similar but had the Normal (Manual) and Auto retune toggle function. Next was their attempt to make it in the smaller "micro-Max" housing (µMAX in their descriptive lingo), and finally the Bandido II µMAX.
The original Bandido and the Bandido II were very good detectors with reasonable detection them for that circuitry design. The µMAX Bandido suffered from the lack of an external Threshold control and poor detection depth in comparison. Not having the Threshold adjustment did impact the performance / versatility, too.
The final offering, the Bandido II µMAX, did have the front-panel Threshold control, and it also had newer circuitry design called the Low-Noise / High-Gin circuitry that enhanced the detection depth, extended the strength of the modulated audio, and resulted in a very good general-purpose detector.
If this is the model you have, then that's very good. All of those Tesoro models have the ED-120 Disc. circuity so I always keep them t their very minimum Disc. setting to just knock out most annoying ferrous debris.
I hope you don't have Covid 19, or if you do it is very mild, and that you are younger and/or in more fit health to better handle it.
I'm older, turning 72 in two months, and my health is terrible. I am a really bad diabetic and need to increase my insulin dosages. I am struggling with high blood pressure, and issues causing low diastolic readings. I've been getting around with a cane since March of '93. My balance and mobility has been a struggle since back injuries in 1988 and again in 2010, loss of part of my left foot due to service-connected disability, and then came December.
By the 11th I was feeling weak but hoped it was just a seasonal cold or 'regular' flu or something. After 11 days I was so weak and out of it strength-wise, my son called the EMT's who escorted me to the hospital via ambulance.
Covid 19. I was there and their newer hospital from the 21st to the 28th when I came home.
I had to buy a walker to get aroud in my house, and that was a struggle. Today is March 10th about 3 months after i was first feeling weaker and more immobile. I am still relying on my walker a lot of the time, but trying to get back to short distances with my cane. I am going to try and put in some detecting time this coming Saturday and hope to last 15 minutes to, who knows, maybe close to an hour on level ground. But the struggle will be getting up after I kneel down to recover a target. I was weak to begin with, but due to my health, this Covid 19 stuff, and the amount of down-time before, during and after the hospital stay, also took a lot out of me and I am struggling to regain the health and what strength I had beforehand.
Hopefully you,. and others, do not get it or get it too severely. I know people who had it and you never would have guessed .... and a couple of them kept on detecting, too.
Anyway, stay well, and be patient as you put in some time to learn your new-to-you detectors. If I can be of any help, shoot me an e-mail or give me a call.
Monte
I have some "modern" detectors in my outfit, such as a Nokta FORS Relic I keep a 5" DD coil mounted to for the nastiest of iron infested sites. A Minelab Vanquish 540 I keep the 5X8 DD on. My Nokta / makro Simplex + for beach hunting or drippy weather days. And my Garrett Apex units for day-to-day hunting.
But two model that are always along with me are my trusted Tesoro Bandido II microMAX and Silver Sabre microMAX, each with a 6" Concentric coil mounted. They are very capable detectors, and when I get ANY new detector or coil in-hand I compare them against my Tesoro's in a few tests to see if they can come close to handling iron nail challenges.
I liked the Gold Racer for nugget hunting type use, but the Kruzer I tried just didn't have as good an audio, and I wasn't impressed with it on higher-conductive coins-type targets. I'm sure the Gold Kruzer will do fine on lower-conductive gold nuggets or gold jewelry.
Put in some time and enjoy them.
But I have a question for you:
Is that a Tesoro Bandido microMAX or a Bandido II microMAX? There is a notable diffrence.
Tesoro made 4 Bandido series models. The original Bandido in the under-slung housing powered by two-9V batteries, then the Bandido II that looked similar but had the Normal (Manual) and Auto retune toggle function. Next was their attempt to make it in the smaller "micro-Max" housing (µMAX in their descriptive lingo), and finally the Bandido II µMAX.
The original Bandido and the Bandido II were very good detectors with reasonable detection them for that circuitry design. The µMAX Bandido suffered from the lack of an external Threshold control and poor detection depth in comparison. Not having the Threshold adjustment did impact the performance / versatility, too.
The final offering, the Bandido II µMAX, did have the front-panel Threshold control, and it also had newer circuitry design called the Low-Noise / High-Gin circuitry that enhanced the detection depth, extended the strength of the modulated audio, and resulted in a very good general-purpose detector.
If this is the model you have, then that's very good. All of those Tesoro models have the ED-120 Disc. circuity so I always keep them t their very minimum Disc. setting to just knock out most annoying ferrous debris.
I hope you don't have Covid 19, or if you do it is very mild, and that you are younger and/or in more fit health to better handle it.
I'm older, turning 72 in two months, and my health is terrible. I am a really bad diabetic and need to increase my insulin dosages. I am struggling with high blood pressure, and issues causing low diastolic readings. I've been getting around with a cane since March of '93. My balance and mobility has been a struggle since back injuries in 1988 and again in 2010, loss of part of my left foot due to service-connected disability, and then came December.
By the 11th I was feeling weak but hoped it was just a seasonal cold or 'regular' flu or something. After 11 days I was so weak and out of it strength-wise, my son called the EMT's who escorted me to the hospital via ambulance.
Covid 19. I was there and their newer hospital from the 21st to the 28th when I came home.
I had to buy a walker to get aroud in my house, and that was a struggle. Today is March 10th about 3 months after i was first feeling weaker and more immobile. I am still relying on my walker a lot of the time, but trying to get back to short distances with my cane. I am going to try and put in some detecting time this coming Saturday and hope to last 15 minutes to, who knows, maybe close to an hour on level ground. But the struggle will be getting up after I kneel down to recover a target. I was weak to begin with, but due to my health, this Covid 19 stuff, and the amount of down-time before, during and after the hospital stay, also took a lot out of me and I am struggling to regain the health and what strength I had beforehand.
Hopefully you,. and others, do not get it or get it too severely. I know people who had it and you never would have guessed .... and a couple of them kept on detecting, too.
Anyway, stay well, and be patient as you put in some time to learn your new-to-you detectors. If I can be of any help, shoot me an e-mail or give me a call.
Monte
Sorry to hear about the family Covid 19 stuff, and that you've been dealing with health issues different from Covid.Metal Pig: said:Monte! I never saw this post until now. I'm so sorry I missed it, especially with you relating being sick and all that. I had to take a break myself from everything, so maybe that's why I missed it. I really hope you're on the upswing and back in the loop. .... I tested negative for COVID, but doctors still couldn't me what was really wrong. After a week of being sick I was better on my own. (I'm 49, by the way. Just starting to roll down the "other side of the hill" now!) .... I had all kinds of other symptoms of toxicity too, many of which mimicked flu-like symptoms. Some COVID strains start in the gut, so it all had me confused and worried. The symptoms I had were very consistent in every way with yeast die-off. I'm very convinced now that's what it was. Three doctors have not been able to offer a better explanation. They concurred it was my IBS acting up. (Yeah, right...)
Good idea!Metal Pig: said:Anyway, back to metal detecting!
Yes, that would be the first Bandido µMAX before the 'II' upgrade with the Low-Noise / High-Gain circuitry. The Silver Sabre µMAX was the best of that 4-model Sabre series, and it does have the newer, enhanced circuitry. Compare them both with the same search coil, Sensitivity and minimum Disc. setting and I am sure you'll note the Silver Sabre µMAX will have the better performance.Metal Pig: said:To answer your question, my Bandido is the first version (no threshold) but is also micromax. Also, guess what...I just scored a Silver Sabre (not the II), and also micromax. That one does have a threshold. I don't have the Sabre yet. When I do I'm going to compare these models and see which one ultimately seems better.
My best? The Bandido µMAX will be escorted to the door.Metal Pig: said:I'm temporarily running out of spending money for this sort of thing. I have one synthesizer I'd sell to buy a metal detector. I might also sell ONE of the Tesoros I have eventually, and throw in some credit plus some cash.
I just sold my choice-condition FORS CoRe w/extra 'OOR' DD coil for $four-hundred something. In the $700 to $800 range you do have some choices. For me and my needs, I am relying on my two favorite Tesoro's, my FORS Relic w/5" DD, and my set of Garrett Apex devices with a 5" DD NEL, and Garrett's 'Ripper' and 'Raider' coils to take care of my needs.Metal Pig: said:I'm thinking I might have a budget of around $700-$800 for my next MD investment. What falls in that category seems to be Anfibio, Kruzer, Nox 600, Deus, Orx...I saw a FORS CoRe for $800 on Ebay recently...
My opinion is that I liked the Vista X, to a degree. I didn't like the twin toggles that are not too friendly and get in the way, and I wish the Discrimination worked like a Tesoro. Normal, you might say, rather than also functioning as a Tone Break. They worked OK in the field, but I preferred my Bandido II µMAX w/GB and Silver Sabre µMAX with a good preset GB.Metal Pig: said:... and what is your opinion on the Bulgarian DeepTech detectors? They look attractive as hell and someone said they are what Tesoro should have been if it had not gone under!
The Kruzer and Multi-Kruzer do not share the same coils as the higher frequency Gold Kruzer. Lack of compatibility.Metal Pig: said:Thanks for you honest assessment of the Kruzer (I assume you mean the Multi?) The real benefit of a Multi Kruzer for me right now would be the ability to share components with my Gold Kruzer.
I liked the Gold Racer and I've heard good things about the slightly higher frequency Gold Kruzer.Metal Pig: said:I like the unusualness of the GK and it is quite a machine. Since we travel to Peru once a year (not last year though)....I would LOVE to try to find some Peruvian gold with it. I also can't ignore the resale value of the machine. I got it for a lousy $420, almost new...and I'm sure I could sell it for more than that. I totally agree with your advice in the meantime: Have patience and learn my current detectors, but I am always planning my next move even if I don't do it immediately.
The gitty-down is tough and the gitty-up is even more of a struggle. The eyes are bad, and my numb fingers do make it difficult to pick up a coin once I finally see it. It's tough to find kids who will do that, but it's an idea I'll try. However, it wont be for a cheap-end detector.Metal Pig: said:I had an idea for you, btw. Maybe you should get some dedicated kid to dig holes for you in return for a serious education in metal detecting. I'd be willing to bet there'd be a few takers. Maybe get some cheap detectors and offer them to kids for putting in "X" amount of time digging for you? Just an idea.
Monte, the more I learn about detecting, the more I realize how great Tesoro detectors really are. ALL of my best finds were made with Tesoro detectors. Look at my banner finds on T-Net under 'tabman'.
beephead
Monte, the more I learn about detecting, the more I realize how great Tesoro detectors really are. ALL of my best finds were made with Tesoro detectors. Look at my banner finds on T-Net under 'tabman'.
beephead
I'm referring to the Vista X here as I have owned two of them:Metal Pig: said:I've been trying to find out more about Bulgarian DeepTechs. They are all-dial, no-display machines and are known for depth and DUAL discriminator knobs. Someone recently wrote that they "are what Tesoro would have been had Tesoro not gone under".
Edit: Monte gave his 2c on that. I'll have to consider that, but some people really seem to like them. I have owned some other Bulgarian made things and was VERY impressed with what those people do sometimes.